|

An aerial photo of the intersection of the Yangtze River, the Yellow Sea, and the East China Sea. [Photo/WeChat account: qidongfabu]

Nantong has carried out surveying work of the Nantong section of the Yangtze River since May, with the goal of making a land and water topographic map.

The Nantong section of the Yangtze River in East China's Jiangsu province is the estuary section of the Yangtze River, a transition area of rivers and oceans, which has been in dynamic evolution. It spans nearly 700 square kilometers, running through the county-level cities Rugao and Qidong, Tongzhou district, Haimen district, and Nantong's downtown area.

This is the first time that the city has carried out basic surveying and mapping work for the large scale data acquisition and map compilation of the underwater terrain of the Yangtze River, with the aim of learning more details about the underwater terrain within Nantong section and the shore line.

As the estuary section of the Yangtze River, the Nantong section contains more sand than regular inland rivers and lakes. Therefore, the mapping at the Nantong section requires advanced equipment to ensure accurate data.

In particular, the Qixing sandbar, a newborn sandbar 18 kilometers east of Yuantuojiao Resort, contains a large amount of sand and fast flowing tides, which requires advanced equipment, said Zhang Yingming, chief engineer of Nantong Jianghai Institute of Surveying and Mapping Co.

The sandbar is expanding every year, gradually becoming a high-quality natural resource of the Nantong section of the Yangtze River.